SAINT LOUIS – The IU Indianapolis men's soccer team took to the road for the third time in the 2024 season for a match against Saint Louis on Labor Day Monday (Sept. 2), drawing 1-1 against the sixth ranked team in the country. Tyson Aschliman's tally—the first of his career—gave the Jags a lead in the 62nd minute, but the Billikens found a late equalizer to give both sides their first draw of the season.

"I have mixed feelings, honestly," expressed head coach Sid van Druenen after the match. "A tie is a good result for us, but we did concede a late goal so it's a little bitter feeling. Performance-wise I am very happy, and the growth the team showed today from a game that happened just three days ago against Bowling Green was tremendous."

Saint Louis (1-1-1) had multiple set piece chances in the opening 15 minutes with three corner kicks and a free kick just outside the 18-yard box. IU Indy (2-1-1) defended well, heading away balls sent into the area and blocking the shot from the free kick.

The Jaguars also had chances early on, with the best coming from Gijs Velings in the fifth minute. After the Billikens blocked Bali Esquivel's attempt, the ball fell kindly to the sophomore from the Netherlands. Velings curled his right-footed shot from about 22 yards, but it ended up just on the wrong side of the post.

The best chance of the opening 45 came from the hosts in the 28th minute. Carlos Leatherman weaved his way down the right side of the box, creating enough space to get off a shot attempt that rocketed across the goal, barely missing the net.  

IU Indianapolis brought in seven substitutes for the final 15 minutes of the first half. The fresh legs applied immediate pressure, leading to a couple chances and a shift in momentum. Jose Antonio Herrera had a shot blocked and Owen Parrish had a shot find the top of the net moments after the substitutions. On the other side of the ball, the defense remained strong, and Mason Taylor ended the half with two saves.

Saint Louis came out on the front foot to start the second half and looked poised to take the lead after putting lots of pressure on the IU Indy back line. Declan Finnegan, who came in at the break, was forced into action from the get-go. The redshirt freshman made a stop following a Saint Louis corner in just the third minute of the half.

Despite the Billikens having more scoring opportunities, the Jaguars were first to get on the board, executing a free kick opportunity in the 62^nd minute to perfection. Velings laid the ball off to Noah Kummrow who made an overlapping down the right side of the field towards the end line. The sophomore played a beautiful ball into a dangerous area and Aschliman got a head on the ball, steering it past the SLU keeper to take a 1-0 lead.

Needing a goal, the hosts turned up the pressure right from the restart. Just two minutes later Saint Louis had multiple shots inside the 18, with one being blocked and the other being saved by Finnegan.

With less than 10 minutes remaining in regulation, the Billikens started to send long balls in behind the defense in search of the tying goal. In the 83rd minute, Luis Lara took advantage of a failed clear attempt, beating Finnegan to knot the match at one.

The hosts continued to dial up the pressure after the goal, but Finnegan would add another save and Giovanni Leon made a crucial block on another Lara shot to see out the 1-1 draw.

Van Druenen's squad will have a week to prepare for another road trip when they take on Akron on Monday (Sept. 9) at 7:00 p.m.